Monday, December 8, 2014

Note: This story is still very much a work in progress, and I plan to continue updating it significantly. When the story is complete, I will remove this notice.

From Russia With Love!!!

...Exclusive First Look...

★ALL-NEW PANERAI★

Radiomir Panerai

Tribute To Paneristi Russia

1940s 47MM Case PAM00622

Again, I am stunned!!!! Panerai is so full of surprises lately!!! They just introduced a super-limited edition Radiomir Panerai and only made 60 of them. This watch was made exclusively for the Russian market and is only available through the Panerai Boutique in Moscow, Russia. This model appears to be based upon the Rolex made Reference 6154 Radiomir, and is the very first example Panerai has made of this magnificent design.

Keep in mind Panerai just surprised us with the introduction of the PAM00587, which is based upon the Rolex Made Vintage Panerai Reference 6152, and now they stun us with this model based which appears to be based upon the Rolex Made Vintage Panerai Reference 6154, which has been nicknamed as "The Small Egiziano."

Some Preliminary Observations:

• The watch has a sapphire crystal v. a plexiglass crystal. Of course the vintage Panerai Reference 6154 had a plexiglass crystal. This stops this model from being 100% historically accurate. Contrast this with the all-new PAM00587, which has a plexiglass crystal that make it look more vintage. There are some advantages to having a sapphire crystal: For instance, it is scratch-proof. The general consensus is that plexiglass offers a warmer look.

PAM 622 v. PAM 587

I put together the graphic below to illustrate all the subtle differences between the PAM 622 and the PAM 587. It is amazing how similar yet different they look from the front view, yet their side profiles, which we can't see yet are very different.

• The "RADIOMIR PANERAI" dial designation uses a smaller font than on the original vintage, which slightly throws off the look of the dial and stops it from looking 100% vintage/authentic. In other words, it gives it a more modern look, which takes away from the otherwise vintage beauty.

• I am not crazy about the strap that it come on. I think it would be better if it had a strap like on the 372 or 587, which are both 4MM thick throughout. Instead the strap is padded in the middle. I have to see the watch in person, but his is just my initial impression.

• Has the double bar hour hand, which looks awesome, but never appeared on a Reference 6154, that I am aware of.

• I was really surprised to learn Panerai only made 60 units in this limited edition, but at the same time it doesn't surprise me, since Angelo Bonati and his team are so great at strategic marketing. I don't think it is a coincidence with the timing of this coming directly after the PAM00587 sold out internationally.

• I was also surprised that this model was launched in Moscow, as a "Tribute To Paneristi Russia". I know there are many, many passionate and loyal Panerai fans in Russia, and I am so happy for the select small group who had the chance to acquire what is arguably the coolest modern Panerai. I say this, because in my personal opinion, the Reference 6154 it is based upon is the coolest Panerai ever made!!!

• The "Swiss Made" designation on the bottom of the dial looks weird, as it is split between both sides of the "6" marker, and reads:

"L SWISS6MADE L"

I believe this is historically inaccurate, as no Radiomir ever had that designation, nor did any vintage Panerai. This detail kind of throws off the dial just a little.

• My initial impression is that this watch is an absolute stunner. I would probably rate it at 97%, which is the same as my rating for the PAM00587. If the watch did not have the details I mentioned above, I probably would have given it a higher score. My best guess is that Panerai will likely launch a true 6154-like Reference at SIHH, or sometime in the future, that will be 100%. Just to be clear, even though I took away several points for the detail mentioned above, I think the overall shape of this watch is probably better than the PAM00587, since it is so much more streamlined and lower in profile due to the much lower crystal height. Would I prefer this watch over a PAM 587? Hard to say. It might be six of one, and a dozen of the other, and without seeing them side by side, I can't say for sure. My gut tells me I would rater have the PAM00622, because it is closer to the 6154. If this does not make sense, it should after you read the article below I wrote about the PAM00587.

I will be expanding this article as new information and photos come in!!!!! One thing is for certain, and that is Panerai seems to be moving full-spear ahead with the awesome 1940s case design...

Welcome To Jake's Panerai World

My name is Jake Ehrlich, and I am the editor and publisher of Jake's Panerai World, as well as Jake's Rolex World and Jake's Patek Philippe World. You can explore and visit all of my blogs by scrolling to the bottom of this page.

I really like Panerai watches, and in particular, I love the original Panerai vintage watches which were made by Rolex. Rolex actually made all vintage Panerai watches, from 1936 through 1956.

The original vintage Panerai watches made by Rolex were the very first Tool Watches, and Diving Watches ever made. In other words, 18 years before the advent of the Rolex Submariner diving watch in 1953, the very first Rolex diving watch ever made, was a Panerai.

I am particularly fascinated with exploring the design nexus between the iconic Rolex Submariner and the original Rolex made Panerai models. It is very subtle, but if dig deep enough you discover a great deal of similarity, hidden in design language.

The original Panerai watches are all worth a fortune today since they are so rare. There are likely less than 1000 vintage Panerai watches in existence. They were originally made exclusively by Rolex for the Italian Royal Navy, and were never available for purchase by the public.

As a designer, I really appreciate the timeless Art Deco design and simplicity of the original Panerai watches.

All the original Panerai watches made by Rolex from the 1930s through the 1950s were 47mm, and at the time they were considered to be enormous. Since then, humans beings have grown considerably in scale, and it is profoundly ironic to consider that our generation and the next are becoming comfortable with the larger size watches. This makes wearing an original 47mm Panerai today, a super cool looking experience. In other words, Panerai watches have transcended time more than any other brand, in a back-to-the future kind of way.

Panerai watches remained dormant from the mid 1950s until they were resurrected in Italy in 1993. In 1996-1997 the Panerai watch brand was purchased by the Vendôme Group, thus making all watches made between 1993 and 1996-1997 "Pre-Vendôme."

The "Pre-Vendôme" watches ranged in size between 42mm and 44mm and primarily featured the classic trademark design "Luminor" case which is distinguished by the half-crescent shaped crown guard. These "Pre-Vendôme" watches were scaled-down versions of the original Rolex made Panerai watches, and paid homage to the earlier Panerai models.

Academy Award winning actor, Sylvester Stallone had typically worn sport Rolex watches, and while shooting a movie named Daylight in Italy in 1995, happened to walk into the Panerai boutique in Florence and discovered the recently resurrected Panerai watch brand. He instantly fell in love with the brand and developed a relationship whereby Panerai made special edition Panerai watches for Stallone to give to his friends, like Arnold Schwarzenegger, and these limited edition watches carried the "Slytech" moniker designation. Stallone also wore Panerai watches in the Daylight movie.

All the "Pre-Vendôme" Panerai watches were considered to be very masculine and macho, and they all came with the similar designed "bottle opener" buckle which most of the original Rolex made Panerai watches came with.

After the Vendôme group took over in 1997, they started making all kinds of fascinating new variants based upon the original Rolex cushion case design language, and added all kinds of options like chronographs.

Today Panerai is owned by the Richmont Group which owns and controls The Vendôme Luxury Group. The Richmont Group, known formally as Compagnie Financière Richemont S.A., is a Swiss luxury goods holding company which was founded in 1986-1988 by Johann Rupert, who is a South African businessman.

The Richmont Group owns many luxury goods brands including, A. Lange & Söhne, Baume & Mercier, Cartier, Jaeger-LeCoultre, James Purdey and Sons, Montblanc, Vacheron Constantin, and Van Cleef & Arpels. The Richmont Group also makes Ralph Lauren watches as part of a joint venture with the Polo Ralph Lauren Company.

Since The Richmont Group acquired Panerai, Panerai watches have grown tremendously in popularity. Since then, Panerai has experimented like crazy, and even made special Ferrari models.

The reason I created Jake's Panerai World is to share all the knowledge and insight I have gained over my years as the world's leading Rolex historian. As a designer, I am absolutely fascinated with the original design language of Panerai watches, and invite you to explore the entire fascinating history of Panerai with me.